Elden Ring Items: A Comprehensive Guide to Loot, Gear, and Consumables
In Elden Ring, items play a crucial role in character progression, combat, and survival in the vast and treacherous world of the Lands Between. From powerful weapons and protective armor to essential consumables and crafting materials, understanding how to acquire, use, and optimize items is key to overcoming the game’s many challenges. This guide covers the different types of items available in Elden Ring, how to find them, and tips for making the most of your gear.
Types of Items in Elden Ring
Weapons
Weapons are essential for combat in Elden Ring, with a wide variety available, including swords, axes, spears, bows, and magic-based armaments. Each weapon has unique stats, scaling, and movesets that influence how it performs in combat. Players can upgrade and infuse weapons with special attributes to improve their damage and add elemental effects.
Armor and Shields
Armor in Elden Ring consists of individual pieces for the head, chest, arms, and legs, allowing players to mix and match different sets. Armor provides varying levels of defense against physical, magical, and elemental damage. Shields can also be equipped to block or parry enemy attacks, with some shields offering additional status resistances.
Talismans
Talismans are equippable items that provide passive bonuses, such as increased health, stamina, or damage. Players can equip multiple talismans at once, allowing for further customization of their character’s strengths and weaknesses.
Consumables
Consumables are single-use items that provide immediate benefits, such as healing health, curing status ailments, or temporarily boosting stats. Common consumables include flasks for restoring health and mana, antidotes for curing poison, and buffs to enhance attack or defense during combat.
Spells and Incantations
Magic in Elden Ring is divided into spells (sorceries) and incantations (faith-based magic). Players can find and learn new spells to expand their magical abilities, with each spell offering unique effects, such as offensive damage, defensive barriers, or healing.
Crafting Materials
The game features a crafting system that allows players to create various items, including consumables, ammunition, and other useful supplies. Crafting materials can be gathered from the environment, looted from enemies, or purchased from vendors.
Key Items
Key items are unique objects required for progressing through the game, solving puzzles, or unlocking new areas. These items often play a role in quests or narrative elements and are stored in a separate inventory section.
Ashes of War
Ashes of War are special items that allow players to modify their weapons with unique skills and attributes. These modifications can change the weapon’s scaling, add elemental damage, or provide new combat abilities.
Many items in Elden Ring can be looted from defeated enemies, especially minibosses, field bosses, and other powerful foes. Certain enemies are more likely to drop specific gear or consumables, making them prime targets for farming.
Exploring the World
The Lands Between is filled with hidden treasures, secret locations, and valuable loot. Exploring thoroughly can reveal hidden pathways, chests, and areas containing rare items, powerful weapons, and unique gear sets.
Boss Fights and Dungeons
Boss fights and dungeons often reward players with valuable items, including rare weapons, armor sets, spells, and key items. Each boss typically drops unique rewards that can significantly improve your character’s capabilities.
Trading and NPC Vendors
NPCs throughout the world of Elden Ring offer items for sale, including consumables, spells, crafting materials, and sometimes even weapons or armor. Players can also trade certain items with specific NPCs to receive valuable rewards.
Crafting and Gathering
Crafting is a key aspect of item management in Elden Ring, allowing players to create items on the go using materials gathered from the environment. Knowing where to find certain materials and recipes is essential for crafting valuable consumables and supplies.
Completing Quests and NPC Interactions
Some NPCs offer quests that, upon completion, reward players with items such as unique weapons, armor, or key items. Engaging with NPCs and completing their quests can yield valuable gear and open up new opportunities.
Ashes of War Locations
Players can find Ashes of War scattered throughout the world, often in challenging or hidden locations. Some can also be obtained by defeating certain bosses or enemies.
Best Practices for Managing Your Inventory
Equip Gear that Complements Your Build
Focus on equipping items that enhance your character’s strengths. For example, if your build is magic-based, prioritize armor and talismans that boost spell damage or mana regeneration.
Upgrade Weapons and Armor Regularly
Upgrading your gear at blacksmiths can significantly increase its effectiveness. Use the materials you collect to upgrade weapons and armor that you frequently use, ensuring you can handle tougher enemies.
Use Consumables Wisely
Save powerful consumables, such as rare healing items or attack-boosting buffs, for tough encounters or boss fights. Make sure to keep your inventory stocked with basic healing flasks and status cures.
Organize Your Inventory
Regularly sort through your inventory to remove or store unnecessary items. Use storage to keep backup weapons, armor, and crafting materials you don’t immediately need.
Experiment with Different Builds and Loadouts
Try different combinations of weapons, armor, talismans, and spells to see what works best for your playstyle. Some encounters may require a different approach, so having multiple loadouts can be beneficial.
Crafting Tips and Tricks
Gather Materials Whenever Possible
Always gather crafting materials when you come across them. You never know when a specific item will be needed to craft a vital consumable or piece of ammunition.
Learn Crafting Recipes Early
Unlocking crafting recipes early on gives you more options for creating useful items. These recipes can be found in the world, obtained from vendors, or rewarded by quests.
Craft Healing Items and Buffs Before Boss Fights
Before engaging in a challenging boss fight, make sure you have crafted enough healing items and combat buffs to sustain you through the encounter.
Stock Up on Ammunition for Ranged Weapons
If you use ranged weapons, such as bows or crossbows, make sure to craft plenty of arrows or bolts. Crafting your own ammunition ensures you never run out during important battles.
Create Items Based on Enemy Weaknesses
If you know an upcoming boss or area has enemies with specific weaknesses (e.g., fire, poison), craft items that exploit those vulnerabilities to gain an advantage.
Why Items Matter in Elden Ring
Items are at the heart of Elden Ring’s gameplay, allowing players to customize their characters, tackle challenging foes, and explore the world effectively. The right gear can turn the tide of battle, while consumables can keep you alive during tough encounters. Whether you’re crafting useful supplies, upgrading powerful weapons, or experimenting with different talismans, managing your items is essential for surviving in the Lands Between.
The Future of Items in Elden Ring
With potential expansions, updates, and additional content, the pool of items in Elden Ring is likely to grow. New weapons, armor sets, talismans, and crafting materials may be introduced, giving players more ways to customize their characters and overcome new challenges. Staying updated on changes and additions will be crucial for optimizing builds and taking full advantage of the game’s evolving mechanics.
Conclusion
Mastering items in Elden Ring is key to thriving in the game’s challenging world. By understanding how to find, upgrade, and use weapons, armor, consumables, and other gear, players can significantly improve their chances of survival. Focus on exploring thoroughly, upgrading essential items, and crafting useful supplies to gain the upper hand in combat and overcome the dangers that lurk in the Lands Between.